The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of a socio-cognitive teaching strategy on young children. It tests their understanding of the factors that friction depends on when an object is projected across a horizontal surface. The study was conducted in three phases: pre-test, teaching intervention, and post-test. The sample consisted of 68 preschool children who were assigned to two groups according to age and cognitive ability, based on their responses to a pre-test. The children in the experimental group participated in activities that were approached from a socio-cognitive perspective while the children in the control group participated in the same activities but from a Piagetian perspective. A statistically significant difference was found (Mann-Whitney U-test), between the pre-test and the post-test, providing evidence for the effect of the socio-cognitive strategy on children's understanding of a 'precursor model' for the concept of friction.